Crunchy bubbles
by crunch.myself
Summary: Fuji Syuusuke's younger sister Miyuki returns to Japan, trying to rebuild the bridge between her and her family that was lost five years ago...
1. Miyuki returns

**Miyuki- Noon, Airport**

This was my first time back in Japan for the last five years. My parents decided to send me over to America when I was seven, judging from my poor grades and the miserable times I had, back in elementary school. A couple years back, America seemed like it was so far away. Everyday I spent there for the first few weeks made me drift further and further away from Japan, breaking the connections between me and my family. I had the thoughts that my parents were trying to get rid of me, since I was the only one who couldn't get straight A's. Well it wasn't my fault that my older siblings Yuuta, Syuusuke and Yumiko were prodigies at their own aspect. Although Yuuta and I share a similarity and we're pretty close. Moving to America had been the perfect escape for me.

I looked out of the window from my seat. So this is Japan huh? I was so used to America, that I'd totally forgotten how it felt like in Japan. I was pretty much the last passenger on board, taking one last deep breath on the plane, seemed to cut off the strings that tied me to America, and releasing me to Japan. I grabbed my backpack and tennis bag, and headed off to the door connecting Japan to America.

I walked out to the huge terminal, where all the check-in counters were. Looking around frantically in search of my family, I was engulfed by the tidal wave of other passengers. I stood up again, brushing the dust off my jeans, then tugging my scarf for reassurance, I headed off to look for my targets. I was pretty sure they were here somewhere, maybe they'd forgotten about my arrival date. If that was so, I'd just have to take the train home myself right? I decided to wait a little longer. Stopping in front of the vending machines to buy a can of grape soda, just in case someone did actually remember me and bothered to come pick me up.

**Syuusuke- Noon, Airport**

Yuuta was tugging onto the shirt I was wearing. He ran off dragging me behind, yelling at me,

"For god's sake, what took you guys so long?"

"Sorry, Mom and Yumiko wanted a toilet break, so we had to wait for them at home." I apologized, though it didn't have much effect at all. Yuuta came over himself, from his boarding school. I bet he came extra early, he and Miyuki were really close, closer to her more than to me.

"Relax, she wouldn't go running around like some baby anymore. Let's just see if her flight has landed yet, then we can go look for her." I tried to calm him down by a suggestion. He raced over to the airplane information board searching for Miyuki's flight. I turned around to see the rest of the family rush over.

"Is she back yet?" My mom asked, she seemed quite worried. Though that was normal for her. She always had some story on airplane accidents or sudden disappearances during plane rides.

"Yuuta's checking." I told her. She let out a sigh. We looked back to the board, Yuuta suddenly colliding into us,

"She's back! The plane' s back!" He didn't stop, but kept on running towards the gate. We followed him slowly, walking over to the gate. As we reached there, a girl about Yuuta's age walked out, wearing a green and blue plaid scarf around her neck, her black cardigan was a little shorter than fully long sleeves, but it looked good on her. Her jeans had a big hole at around the knees, showing off her small kneecaps. Though it wasn't the clothes that made me notice her, it was her resemblance to Yuuta. I knew it was her.

Without thinking, I walked up to the girl. Only five seconds later, a huge crowd of passengers flowing out from the gate kept her hidden. I walked over to her original spot, but the kid was no where to be seen. I supposed she could've wriggled out of there and went somewhere else to cool off and wait for us, though that was highly unlikely. I looked around. Feeling thirsty, I let my feet drift off to the nearby vending machine.

As I got closer to the machine, I spotted the girl again. Calling out to her,

"Miyuki!" Oh shoot. I had no idea if that was really my sister. That sounded weird, not knowing what your sister looks like is just weird. The girl turned around upon hearing her name. She gave me some sort of look.

"You are... Syuusuke?" She asked. I nodded.

"You're Miyuki right?" She nodded.

**Miyuki- 7 o'clock in the evening, Home**

The guy who yelled my name out loud in the airport turned out to be my brother. I didn't really recognize him, even though I remember that his hairstyle still hasn't changed at all. I supposed they all thought I was a little different. Very different. Dinner was just a whole lot of questions directed towards me. Funny I'd actually managed to answer most of them _and _finish my dinner.

I took a look at my room just before dinner. It was cool- the bed was low and close to the ground, which was what I liked, due to my childhood phobia of having monsters beneath my bed. The walls of the room were painted a creamy orange, very warm and snugly, also matching the bed sheets and duvet. In front of the window was my desk. It was wooden and painted red. Hanging from the railings, my curtains suited the room colors well. With bright red, orange and green circles sprinkled all over the white fabric. I had a little side table right next to the bed, enough space to hold two photo frames. One of my parents, the other of the four of us kids.

**Miyuki- Early in the morning, The Fuji household**

"Morning," I mumbled in English, to whoever was listening. There was no reply. "Morning?" I tried again. This time in Japanese,

"Oh, hi Miyuki chan. How's your um... fourth day in Japan?" This was my mom. She's the only one who seems to have noticed my daily greetings.

"I'm fine thanks, I just can't seem to fit in somehow. It's so tiring after that 10 hour flight, even after four days. For god's sake, its so annoying." Its my fourth day in Japan, after five long years in America. My wonderful escape was over, and my days in being the idiot of the family came back. A sudden DOINK came from my head. Syuusuke suddenly placed a fist on my head. His eyes gleamed playfully even though they weren't fully open. I wriggled my head to remove the hulking fist off my perfectly combed hair. He smiled and grabbed his own seat. Yuuta was sitting across the table. He came back from his boarding school in St. Rudolph's, just for my arrival.

I was stuffing up myself with the Japanese breakfast my mom prepared, when Syuusuke suddenly handed my colossal tennis bag over to me. He just sort of dumped it onto my legs, where the bag just squished itself in between my legs and the table.

"Gee, thanks for suddenly putting my bag onto my legs." I said, in my awesome Japanese. So much for not speaking the language for five years.

"We're... I mean you're going for the tennis tryouts today in the girls' team." He replied, not bothering to get my bag off, after what he did to me.

I rolled my eyes. Everyone ignored me. This is what I don't like about for the last four days I've spent here. Nobody gets non-verbal communication. Rolling my eyes would mean nothing but sheer entertainment of showing off my ability to play with my eyes. I shoved the rest of my breakfast into my mouth and sped off to grab my school stuff. I pack pretty last minute. On the morning before my plane ride back, I just began packing up my stuff. I know that is a bit late, but you can't really do much when you're partying the night before huh?

"Miyuki! Hurry up, you're gonna be late." Syuusuke was already at the door. He's just too organized, pretty much in any aspect. You should see his tennis bag, every time he plays, he folds his jersey up. Neat and tidy, no creases whatsoever. Then gently- when I mean gently, its as if his jersey's gonna break any minute, he places the ever-so fragile jersey into the bag of his. I ran down the stairs, nearly tripping on the last step, then shoving my feet into my shoes, and ran to catch up with my brother.

**Sakuno- A little while before homeroom, The first year hallway**

I sighed to myself. Another school day full of the worst combination of subjects. Lets see, first period; Math. Argh, what a wonderful way to start the day. Second period; Japanese history. This isn't too bad, but its boring to listen to your teacher drone on and on about some random civil war. Just when I was checking for third period, some girl ran right into me.

"Whoa!" I yelled, falling forwards. My schedule, papers, homework, notebook flew out of my hands and fluttered like stripy white butterflies dropping slowly to the ground in the first year hallway.

"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry!" For some reason, this girl was speaking in English. Then judging by her action of covering her mouth, I guess she saw my awkward expression, meaning that I didn't understand whatever she just said. "I meant sorry." She spoke in an accented Japanese. My reaction to the incident still hadn't recovered, I just mumbled softly, then bent down to dust my skirt. Her uniform looked new, plus I was pretty sure I've never seen her around here before, coming with the conclusion that this was the new transferee to our class. First year class 2.

She was a little short, but not too much under average, about an inch or two shorter than me. Her eyes were half closed, a little similar to Fuji senpai's. The girl suddenly hopped up, revealing the first time; her bright, sparkling, blue eyes. She opened them so wide, that they almost seemed to spill out of her sockets. Her short, shoulder length brown hair swished around as she jumped up, I knew she was the kind with the wonderful, bubbly personality and easy-going attitude.

"Hi! What's you're name?" She piped up,

"Oh. Um, Sakuno. Ryusaki Sakuno." Dammit, quit the shyness Sakuno! It was useless. I would try to find a fresh start to make myself seem more confident, though the results were always the same. Luckily, the perky atmosphere saved the day.

"Cool. I'll see you sometime at school huh?" She ran off, just like that.

**Syuusuke- Morning practice, Tennis courts**

"Miyuki," I said to her in my stern voice, "You understand that today is the crucial moment in creating a good impression on your teachers right?"

"Yes mother." She said in her mockery tone, god was this kid annoying. "I've transfered before, I know exactly what to do at precise moments." I nodded, but still worried she might wreak havoc on her first day. We walked over to the tennis courts to meet Ryusaki sensei, our tennis coach. She knew I had a younger sister, unlike the rest of the team apart from Eiji, Inui and Tezuka. She greeted us with a wave and walked over.

"You must be Miyuki. I'm Ryusaki Sumire, or just Ryusaki sensei. How's your first day here?" She asked, in her usual gentle but warm voice.

"I'm fine, it's a little different to America. But I'll get used to it." The kid replied. Good, at least she knows how to impress a teacher.

"Sensei, Miyuki would like to try out for the girls' team, is that possible?" She shot me a glare when I said "Miyuki". I looked back at her and put on my ever so annoying smiles. Ryusaki sensei thought for a while,

"I suppose we could fit in someone else in the ranking tournament, though I have to confirm with the captain first." She said. I nodded to show my agreement, as Miyuki wondered off to watch the morning practice. She stared into court C, where Echizen was playing against Momoshiro.

"That person is so unexpected." She said. Ryusaki sensei looked over,

"What do you mean he's unexpected?" She asked.

"He's a lefty right? But he's playing with his right hand." Ryusaki sensei looked at me, I shook my head as if to say that I didn't tell her about Echizen's dominant hand. She stared interestingly at Miyuki, I was surprised that she knew that. "Oh wait, does he play piano?" She suddenly asked. Ryusaki sensei shook her head,

"That boy isn't very musical, he's too focused on tennis." But a soft "oh" was what Miyuki said. After that, she concentrated on watching the game.

After watching Echizen beat Momo, we ran off to our classes. I just hoped that she was able to find hers.

**Miyuki- Just before class, Lost**

Um, lets see. I mumbled to myself. It was nearly time for homeroom, and I was lost. I had already managed to find the locker room, my locker and changed my shoes. All that's left was to find my homeroom. I was pretty sure I was in the second class of first year, but I couldn't find the room. I suddenly remembered the girl I had bumped into a while ago, I was pretty sure the sign above one of the doors said "1-2". Running back to the stairs, swept in the flashbacks of how I'd managed to get to the hall, retracing my steps. Finding my classroom.

I reached there just in time. The teacher tapping at her watch impatiently, I bowed and apologized, saying that I was lost finding my way here. She tutted slightly, but spoke;

"I am Shiraki Ai, you may call me Shiraki sensei. Come in when I call for you, alright?" I nodded solemnly, trying to remember what Syuusuke had taught me to say for my introduction to the class. The door slid open, and the teacher glided into the room. I stayed outside waiting to be called in.

"Please come in." Her voice sounded through the thin door. I pulled it open and stepped inside. The room was pretty big. There were seven rows, each row had six tables. Nearly every seat was occupied, except for the seat at the very back, very right of the room, right beside the window. Just what I'd wanted. Shiraki sensei gestured me to introduce myself to the class. I glanced at the board seeing my name written in clear white chalk.

"Good morning, I am Fuji Miyuki, 12 years old." I spoke in a clear voice. There was an awkward silence in the class, but that disappeared as the teacher told me to take my seat at the vacant one beside the window. I nodded obediently and walked over to take my seat. Oh god, this was when the murmuring began. Where everyone was making up some sort of exaggerated story of your background, how you ended up in the school, so and so. I looked up at the teacher standing around eight meters away from me, and smiled. Japan was greater than what I'd expected.


	2. Her injured arm

**Sakuno- Homeroom, Miyuki's introduction**

I recognized that girl. She was the one who bumped into me this morning. Miyuki, Fuji Miyuki huh? I was trapped within the thought until another thought woke me up. Fuji? Was she related to the Fuji senpai in the tennis club? Her eyes _did _remind me of Fuji senpai's, she even looked a bit like Fuji Yuuta kun in St. Rudolph's. Though I've never heard that Fuji senpai had a younger sister. Perhaps it was just a coincidence. Or not.

**Miyuki- Homeroom, Dreaming**

I scanned the classroom. There was a boy sitting in front of me, he was a little on the chubby side, with short spiky hair and huge ears that grew out of the side of his head like stray mushrooms. The girl to my right was pretty, she had two puffy bunches that looked cute on her, but her dramatic whispering to her neighbors sort of scared me. Looking around the room for a friend, I spotted the girl I met this morning. I think her name was Sakuno, yep Ryusaki Sakuno. The same Ryusaki as Ryusaki sensei. That thought hit my head like a huge meteor falling down to earth. They must be related I thought. She was really pretty, I envied her ever so long hair that was neatly braided into two plaits. She seemed really quiet, but nice too. I could be her friend I suppose.

Straight after homeroom was first period. I took another look at the schedule and huffed. Math. Looking up for help, I saw Sakuno and the girl with the bunches chattering together. I walked over and waved at Sakuno, who waved back.

"Hi, you're Sakuno right?" She nodded, blushing a bit. Though her friend was an outgoing one,

"Sakuno, you know her?" She looked at Sakuno then at me. Sakuno nodded slightly again. I decided to explain who I was.

"You're the girl who sits next to me in homeroom. I'm Miyuki, nice to meet you." I extended my hand expecting her to shake it. She shook it and spoke,

"I'm Tomoka Osakada. A friend of Sakuno's." I smiled when she said her name.

"So, Tomoka chan, can you tell me where the math classroom is?" I asked, once I knew her better. Sakuno suggested we all walk over to the classroom, giving me a comforting smile. I smiled back gratefully and trotted along with them.

**Ryusaki sensei- Math class**

Fuji Miyuki turned out to be a genius at math. She was tutoring Sakuno for pretty much the entire math lesson. I walked up to her and noticed that she was writing with her left hand.

"So, you're a lefty too right?" I asked.

"Yup. The same as Yuuta." She said.

"Ah, the Fuji brothers. They're both prodigies in tennis. We'll see about you later." I picked up the ranking sheet from my desk and showed her. "You're in court D. You'll be playing against six other kids. They're all juniors and seniors, we don't usually let the freshman go in the intra-school ranking tournaments." She nodded seriously and continued with her work. This girl turned out to be quite a surprise, you never know what she'll do next.

**Syuusuke- After school, Tennis courts**

End of school. Day one: almost complete. Miyuki was already making friends, this was a surprise. At the start, everyone thought she would have a hard time in fitting in, but that wasn't true. She had already known half of her class, and become good friends with the granddaughter of Ryusaki sensei and Echizen's biggest fan- Tomoka. At lunch, she wasn't playing the new girl in school, sitting alone in the lunch table at the far corner. She sat right in the center of the cafeteria, along with the Ryoma sama fan club. Now it was time for tennis. We weren't sure of her level, but judging from whatever happened this morning, she seemed to be pretty good. Ryusaki sensei placed her in court D, where the captain and the team's ace was.

Miyuki placed her bag down on one of the benches. She picked out her favorite racket and began warming up. First stretches, legs then arms. Fifty sit-ups and pushups each. Then a couple laps, pumping her legs up. Then finally hitting the ball against the wall. The other girls watched her as she warmed up, it must have been weird to them, since nobody would automatically go running laps without someone making them. Miyuki seemed to have done everything without the captain yelling at the group.

She threw the ball up into the air, her body bent slightly backward, then whoosh. She served toward the wall. It wasn't any particular type of play, but she kept hitting the ball back to the exact same position. Her concentration could be seen in her bright blue eyes, which were usually sparkling when she was happy, but a sharper edge when focusing on the ball.

**Miyuki- Practice, Tennis courts**

I knew Syuusuke was watching me practice. I'd done my minimal warm up; consisting of stretches, fifty sit-ups and pushups each, 20 laps around the courts, and now hitting the ball against the wall. I started off with my dominant hand, the left one. Serving then swinging to the beat of the ball as it bounced to the wall and back. My toes encased within my shoes were moving to the beat. It was a three four time, sounding like a waltz. The thought flowed into my brain as the waltz music played into my ears. My last piano exam had a waltz in it, which I was forced to play. It was by Schubert, very lively and smooth, no detached notes or whatsoever. Anyhow, the music was playing, and I played along the rhythm.

I continued to hit until I felt like stopping. Then I switched hands. Now to train my right one. I served and swung, again with the music in my ears, I began my warm up on my right hand. It was a while when I suddenly stopped, having the feeling that someone was watching me. I turned around and saw the captain of the girls' tennis team. Sakurai Nodoka. Her pale yellow eyes were slanted upwards, forming a very sharp edge at the corners of her eyes. Her pink bangs flopped just above her eyes, hiding her eyebrows. Her waist length, jet black hair was pulled up into a tight ponytail at the back, even though tied up, it was still way below the shoulders. Her haughty smile could've explained her entire personality. A sly, cunning captain. Those words repeated in my head again and again, though it didn't even bother me, since that was exactly what she was.

"Hey you! Fuji's kid sister." She called, carefully trying not to mess up the lipstick on her perfect lips. I turned around,

"Who are you?"

She frowned.

"Your captain. Sakurai Nodoka. It's so very nice to meet you." Her words oozed with sarcasm.

"It's very nice to meet you too." I emphasized on the 'very nice', giving her my nastiest glare. She noticed it and laughed.

"Don't try to look pro or whatever, 'cause you're never gonna make it to a regular."

"What are you saying? Am I too pro for you?" I asked cautiously.

"You're a lefty right? Then stick to your fucking left hand and stop using your right. Unless you're too crap to beat us with one hand, you can use both." She laughed again. I was pissed. Really pissed.

"Well, I'm sorry to tell you this, but I'm good enough to beat you with my right hand." I told her, then went back to hitting the ball. I had no idea what was happening until something metal, with woven string criss-crossing the center hit my left arm. Yes. It was a racket. And my arm hurt real bad afterwards.

**Fuji- Practice, Tennis courts**

"Regulars! Run thirty laps around the courts. Everyone else, Run twenty laps. Freshman, prepare the balls for the tournament." The captain hollering at the tennis club members. Eiji ran up to me, as we began our warm up. He nudged me and said,

"That was Miyuki this morning? Cute thing she is." I laughed at the second statement. Momoshiro apparently overheard the conversation and joined in,

"Who's Miyuki?" He asked, curious. "Oh wait, she's Fuji's girlfriend. Right?" Eiji burst out laughing.

"No she's not, she's Fuji's sister, you idiot." Eiji explained.

"Oh." Momo's face fell.

"Let's go watch the girls' tournament later," I tried, which indeed, cheered Momo up a lot. "Finish the matches quickly, then we'll go."

**Sakuno- Tournament, Tennis courts**

"It's the girls' intra-school ranking tournaments, plus Miyuki's in it, we have to go Tomo chan!" I grabbed Tomo chan's hand and ran off full speed to watch the game. Even though I'm not usually over at the girls' team- mostly because Sakurai senpai is captain, I made a definite decision that I had to watch the tournaments today. We reached the tennis courts just as Miyuki walked into court D.

"MIYUKI!" We yelled, Tomo chan waved her arms in a hysterical way, and I swore I heard Sakurai senpai say 'Those girls are here to cheer for the loser freshman?'. I turned back to Miyuki to see her smile and wave back. I looked around the court and noticed that Fuji senpai and a few other regulars were there watching Miyuki, I grabbed Tomo chan's hand again and went over to the regulars.

"Hello, Fuji senpai." We greeted him, he turned and smiled at us.

"Miyuki's playing against the captain later huh?" We nodded. It was scary, nobody was sure of Miyuki's level, not even her own brother. The first game ended quickly with Miyuki winning 6-0, beating a junior with the racket in her right hand. Fuji senpai noticed a few minutes into the game,

"I didn't know she was this good. A southpaw."

She walked over to put down her racket and to grab a drink of water, I noticed that she wasn't sweating at all. She took a quick sip, then ran back onto the court. Ready for the second game. The next game was easy for her, her opponent wasn't a regular, until the third game. She was against one of Sakurai senpai's friends, Nakamura Kazuha.

"Hmm... Nakamura Kazuha, third year class 6. Very popular among her class, best friends with Sakurai Nodoka. Grey eyes, short brown hair just by her chin. Favorite color: oak brown, Favorite animal: Buffalo. Favorite makeup brand: Naturally Beautiful- uses organic makeup, brown lipstick, pale green eyeshadow...etc. Has an older sister who goes to university in Australia..." Inui senpai droned on and on about the data he has on Nakamura senpai. From what he said, it is so true that Nakamura senpai is beautiful. In all aspects, even in tennis. The way she served was so graceful that you would've believed that the ball had no power in it. Miyuki stood steady at the baseline ready to hit the ball back. She saw the actual power in the ball, with that, she yelled,

"No matter how graceful you hit, there must be power on a moving ball. Here!" She hit it back. I could see her feet moving slightly, when I realized that it moved to a beat, pulsing, 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 3, 4... She moved to the rhythm of the ball.

Halfway in the game, Miyuki was sweating a little, she was winning, of course. But Nakamura senpai was catching up 4-3. She was still in rhythm, it seemed like everything she did on the court was exactly correspondent to the beat on her toes. You could hear her saying it softly,

"1, 2, 3, hit. Step, step, step, hit. Step, 2, 3, hit." And so on.

When it was her turn to serve. She stepped back at the baseline, threw the ball up and tapped her foot. 'tap tap tap' then a giant blow with her right arm, she served the ball over to Nakamura senpai's side, who missed the serve entirely.

"15 love." The referee's voice called out. Announcing the point.

Miyuki took another ball, threw it up. This time, she muttered to herself,

"Bend, jump, racket, hit." On hit, she threw herself with the racket towards the ball, hitting the ball with the center of the racket. Again, another no touch ace. It was until game point, 40 love, Nakamura senpai began to get angry. Really angry.

"Stop showing off with you stupid right hand Fuji! Don't think that you can beat me with those crap serves you've got." She snorted.

"Well apparently, I am." Miyuki replied in a calm voice. She raised the ball up to eye level, then dropped and swung, a simple underhand serve. Nakamura senpai, expecting another rhythmic serve of Miyuki's was so shocked that she couldn't move.

"Game, five games to three. Fuji leads." The referee announced. Nakamura senpai had smoke coming out of her ears.

**Miyuki- Match against Nakamura senpai, Court D**

When the referee announced my win, signaling an end to the match, I practically sighed. I knew it didn't seem like I was tired, but my right hand was drained of energy, and my left hand throbbed with pain. I doubted that I could play another game against a regular. I clutched the racket with my right hand and wiped the sweat off my forehead. I walked over to get my drink and pack up. It was the last match for the day, the rest would continue tomorrow. I held my water bottle with the straw just above my mouth and squirt the water right into the wide open mouth of mine. Realizing that there was still leftovers, I held it above my head and squeezed the rest of the water out onto my sweaty head. It felt great. I packed up fast, and hurried to Syuusuke, congratulating my on my wins. The other regulars took turns shaking my hand and well, playing with my hair. It was great to win. But whoever your opponents are, there's nothing better than beating the crap out of captain Sakurai.


	3. The captain

**Syuusuke- Night of Miyuki's tennis match, Bedroom**

Today was the first time I'd noticed Miyuki's tennis skills. She used to hate tennis a lot, with a similar reason to Yuuta's, only that she hated being compared to anyone else. That was one of the reasons that she got sent to America, to let her focus on one thing she really wants to do, something nobody can compare to her. And that was piano.

Just after dinner, she practiced a little on the piano we have in our living room. Just from learning for five years, she's already played in a few concerts, plus having exams every year has pretty much turned her into a pro. Nobody would dare compete with her in terms of music. On the other hand, she'd gotten an interest to tennis. No, not only interest, there was skill. Watching her play is very interesting, her style is not highly noticeable, but you can predict her once you understand her way of playing. Her rhythmic sense from playing the piano is used in her play style. The way she moved stunned me, every move was precise, right on with the timing. Sort of a mix between Kamio from Fudomine and Momo, the junior in Seigaku.

I was lying on my bed, supposedly reading a book, but I got too carried away with Miyuki and her tennis. I could still hear her playing the piano downstairs, man was she good. Though she always seemed so distant, I felt that I didn't really know her, even though she was related to me this close. All I wanted to do was to close my eyes and let everything begin once again. That she never played the match against Nakamura; that she never transfered to Seigaku; that she never returned to Japan; that she never went to America; that she never even existed.

**Miyuki- Piano practice, Living room**

_Ever since moving to America, I figured I needed a restart. To make myself fresh, also to turn myself into a pro in something I'm good at. To make myself incomparable. That was when I'd decided to take up piano. I've always had long, flexible fingers. My music teacher suggested me to take up lessons, and so I did. I found myself suitable for playing the piano, sooner or later, I was playing like no other kid could play. My first year in piano went so fast. I'd only taken a few lessons for a month and I'd started a grade two song which I'd found on the internet. A couple months later, I was preparing for a grade three exam. I aced it with a distinction nine months later. Before I knew it, I was getting really good._

My fingers flew over the keys, pressing on the correct ones as I went. I'd look up occasionally to read the sheet music, although I'd managed to remember a few keys, then improvising on some others. I had a genuine feel for playing, I'd add a little bit over here, and change that part over there. Sometimes when I went over the edge, I played around with the rhythm a little bit. Today I started a new piece, it was jazzy and fun, just what I felt like for today. The jumpy rhythm made me go all out at some points, adding a few slurs to emphasize some parts, and trills to make my fingers move fast, a way to soothe an aching arm after a long tennis match. I paused when I'd finished the first page, gazing out of the big glass door that led to our garden. It was already pretty late, the stars dotted around the sea black sky. I stood up and took the sheet music down, I'd decided that was enough practice for today. Gently, I closed the piano lid and walked over to the fridge for a drink. I reached in hoping for some milk, only finding a last can of grape soda. Without thinking, I took the remaining can of soda and started drinking. My fingers tapping the kitchen counter to the rhythm of me gulping down the purple liquid. That was when I felt the sharp pain from my left elbow.

"Ouch." I winced. Putting down the can, I unraveled my pajama sleeve and found a big purple spot around my elbow. _Must've been from the fucking racket she hit me with. _I bent down to the freezer and took out an ice pack. Placing the ice pack onto my elbow, then pressing down gently. There wasn't much point to it anyways, the bruise was already spreading, there was no need to place an ice pack over it. Though I still felt like it. I needed something to cool me down from the hot anger that flared inside of me.

**Syuusuke- Night drink, Kitchen**

I sat up from my bed, deciding that it was a time for my special drink. The grape soda that I'd bought on my way home from school was waiting for me in the fridge downstairs. I shuffled into my slippers and headed for the kitchen. I was halfway down the stairs, when I saw Miyuki take an ice pack from the freezer. _That's funny, what's she doing with an ice pack this late? _I thought. It was when I saw her place it on her elbow, I realized that she'd gotten hurt. _Might have banged against the piano or something. _Looking at the kitchen table, I saw my drink. _My drink. I'll let her have it. Since she's hurt. _I turned around and snuck back into my bedroom. Crawling into the covers, I fell asleep.

**Ryoma- Intra-school ranking tournaments, Tennis courts**

I was a regular. Actually, I'd expected myself to be a regular anyways, so yeah, that was fulfilled. Following the other regulars, we went over to the girls' courts. Fuji senpai's little sister was playing. She was in my year, the class next to mine. I spotted her playing in court B, against another regular. It seemed to be her second match, and she was already sweating a lot. _Hmm, she has the same problem as Sakuno. Only that it's not as bad._ Her knees were bending inward a little to much, that was the reason for why she didn't have enough balance in her serves. Eiji senpai suddenly jumped in front of me.

"Eiji senpai! I can't see." I whined. Jumping up to look. Eiji turned around and patted me on the head.

"Well you better grow taller o'chibi!" He teased. I grumbled as he stepped around me and pushed me forward, hugging my neck and positioning his head on top of my cap. I tugged on the beak of my cap and coughed. He made a face and stood back up. "O'chibi is so mean!" He ran off to Oishi. I muttered to myself.

"40-15. Ryou leads." The referee spoke up. I looked over to the board, the game count was three all. _This must be a tough match._Miyuki was panting by now, _though she still has a chance to win. _I thought, after seeing the senpai she was playing against. Ryou Yuuko, a junior who lacked stamina. The poor senpai was half dead by now, her head was hung low and she looked like she was ready to forfeit. She bent down to pick the ball up, then crashed onto the ground with her knees scraping against the hard tennis court. She was playing so hard that she'd fainted. Ryusaki sensei called for help and took the girl into the infirmary. Even as she left, the other girls were still playing in their games, except for Miyuki. She walked over to the side of the fence where I was. She looked up and waved at me.

"I know you. You're in the class next to mine." She said.

"Yeah, I'm in the tennis club with your brother." I told her coolly. She kept on chatting.

"You're a lefty, right? So am I." She remarked. I was surprised.

"How'd you know?" I asked her. She grinned,

"I'm a lefty too." I still didn't get what she meant. There was a moment of silence, then she smiled.

"Well, I'll guess I'll be seeing you later. Want to play a game sometime? You know, lefty against lefty?" She offered, I nodded, then pointed towards the gate.

"Ryusaki sensei is gonna be back. You'd better to get a drink now." She nodded too and sped off.

**Miyuki- The captain, Tennis courts**

I saw Ryou senpai being carried into the infirmary. It seemed like she was running away on purpose, that she just didn't want to play the game. So far, I had only won yesterday's matches and the one where Ryou senpai had to forfeit. I was angry at that. Soothing my anger, I took my water bottle and began drinking while I waited for Ryusaki sensei.

She walked in telling me to prepare for my last game against the captain. Sakurai senpai walked onto the court, throwing her long black ponytail back, then trotted over to a bench and placed her tennis bag down. She took out some wrist weights and turned over to me,

"I'll give you a handicap, I see that you need one pretty badly."

"No thank you. Would you like one?" I asked her. She gave me a look. "I take that as a no. If that is, I'll just go all out on this one." I warned her, just in case she'd put the blame on me.

"Oh you better." Was all she said.

"One set match, Sakurai to serve." The referee announced. The captain stood at the baseline, far away from me. She threw the ball up into the air and hit. That was when we started our game. I managed to return her serve, and then running up toward the net, stopping sometimes to hit the ball. When I got real close to the net, she suddenly hit a lob. _Darn. _I took a few steps backward, stumbling a little on the last step, though jumped up. I smashed the ball in, it scraped against the net, landing on the spot around an inch away from the net.

"15 love." I stared into the void between us. Sakurai stepped back and served. We rallied until she started losing energy, _right away in the first game. _I thought. _How can she even be captain with such bad stamina?_ Just when that thought surfaced into my mind, her eyes lit up like stars. Straight away, she caught up with the ball, hitting it right past me.

"Out. 30 love."

_Where the hell did she get all that energy from? _I looked back and saw the mark on the ground. It was dark, the ball must've been pretty heavy, thank goodness I didn't try to volley it back. She served again. This time, I caught up to the ball and tried to return it. _It's so goddam heavy. _I placed my left hand onto the racket and swung around, pivoting on my right foot. The racket blasted out of my hands. The sudden striking blow caused my left elbow to throb. I winced at the pain, but went to collect my racket. Gazing through the hole in the strings, I recalled my first tennis match against Syuusuke.

"Come on, hit the ball back." He looked down at me. I picked up the tennis ball and served right into the net. He took another ball out of his pockets and looked at me sternly. "Watch." And he demonstrated. I retrieved the ball from the ground, then copied his move. The ball landed right on the net, then dropped back towards my side. I'd started crying then. Syuusuke didn't mind the crying. He dropped his racket and ran over to me. "Are you alright? Are you hurt, anywhere?" He asked, concerned. I replied to him,

"How do you serve that well?" Blinking back my tears. He smiled at the reply, then taking my hand that was holding onto the racket, he taught me how to serve.

I was five then, and Syuusuke was only seven. Even though he was good at everything, he understood my troubles. It felt so nice then when he'd help me and Yuuta with our problems. But then there was the neglecting part of the story, which wasn't enough to redeem our relationship.

**Syuusuke- Neglect, Miyuki's past**

We used to play together, all the time. Until Miyuki turned seven, I was preparing for my exams to get into a middle school. Our parents and Yumiko tried to make me work on my subjects other than tennis. Everyday after school, Miyuki would run over to me with her tennis racket in her hand and a smile plastered on her face.

"Syuusuke, lets go play tennis!" She'd say to me. I smiled back and replied,

"I can't today, I'll see if I can play tomorrow. Okay?" She looked down, then glanced up again, nodding like a crazy jack-in-a-box. The next day, she'd say the same thing over again, I repeated my lines like a crap actor. She still took it, but seemed to look worse. Day after day, the same thing happened again. Soon enough, she was annoyed with me. I noticed it once in a while, that she'd come home late after school, spending most of her time in her room, even eating dinner when everyone else had finished. My mother thought there was something wrong with her, so they decided to let her off to America, where nobody could bother her.

A few months later, Miyuki was off to the airport. Only dad brought her to the airport, but since he couldn't find a parking spot, he dropped her off right at the front of the airport. Leaving her alone in checking in and everything else.

It was strange for her to come back, after all these years, she still hadn't forgotten about being neglected. I tried to make it up to her, though she still didn't seem to like it anyways. She was Miyuki, the girl who was neglected by her family.

**A/N: This isn't exactly going on the way I'd originally wanted it to, but oh well. I'll try to turn it back. Anywayzzz... please comment, feedback, review... whatever you call it. Just wanna know what you think of the story... thankss.**


	4. Syuusuke finds out

**Miyuki- Game against the captain, Tennis courts**

This was the seventh game we've been playing. Five games to two, the captain leading. If I'd lost this game, I wouldn't make it to the regulars. _I had to beat the captain._ I focused on returning all the balls with rhythm, counting the beats in my head softly. Compound time, I whispered to myself as I watched her serve at me. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Before I knew it, it was Five games to four. I'd caught up.

I was setting the rhythm by hopping on my feet, when suddenly, the sharp pain from my left arm began hurting again. My looked at my right hand, it was shaking like an earthquake. I was draining out of energy, plus my left hand hurt like hell. Sakurai senpai must've noticed my hand shaking, she called out to me.

"So you really can't beat me with one hand? Why not try using the other?" She smirked. I didn't reply and gripped onto my racket tighter. I did a simple underhand serve, counting the beats again, then hitting the ball back. Rallying for a while, the racket began to slip from my hand. I'd missed a shot.

"15 love." I looked over and saw her smirking like she'd already won the game. _Fuck that bitch._ Again, I served. Swinging myself to launch the ball over the net. I'd began to pivot in every hit I made, making it easier to run back to the center, then decide where the ball would land. Right on my match point, I began to realize how tired my right hand was. It wasn't even my dominant hand. Plus, I've been playing with that hand against such a strong opponent. I switched to my left to play the last shot. Sakurai senpai saw the switch, she served towards the left side, making it harder for my injured arm to hit. I swung myself again, hitting the ball right in the center of my racket, then dropping the racket as the ball descended sharply towards her side of the court, rebounding and crashing straight into the fence.

"40-14, Game and match, Fuji Miyuki." The game had ended. Kneeling down and holding my left arm gingerly, I crawled across the court to get my racket. When I got there. Syuusuke was standing in front of my racket. He held out his hand which I ignored and stood up. I walked around him when he suddenly grabbed my left arm.

"What happened to your arm?" He asked me. I looked back at him, his eyes were still half closed.

"Nothing much, I- I just tripped down the stairs today." I stammered. Looking at Sakurai senpai, who was packing away her rackets. Syuusuke opened his eyes.

"Don't lie to me, Miyuki." He said. I could feel that his voice was intense. He looked around, as if looking for someone. He spotted the boys' captain, Tezuka senpai, who he whispered to. Tezuka nodded after Syuusuke said something to him. Then looked at me and said,

"Lets go."

I looked blankly at Syuusuke. _What am I supposed to do now? _Syuusuke read my thoughts,

"You're going to the hospital for a check up." He responded in a monotone. I sighed and began packing my things up. He stopped me and made me go straight away. Telling me that he would pack my things for me. I sighed again and left.

**Tezuka- Checkup, Hospital**

We walked into the hospital. Nurses, doctors, patients running around the place. I stopped in front of one of the doors in the long corridor, and knocked.

"Come in." A voice replied to my knocking. I stepped inside the room with Miyuki behind me. She peeped out from the side, her mind absorbed by the mess of the room. I pulled the big rolling chair out for her, which she half clambered, half sat into. I sat myself down on the round stool beside her. The doctor looked up from his papers, eyes twinkling,

"So, who is this here?" He chuckled.

"This is Fuji Miyuki, my friend's younger sister." I replied. "She's had a similar incident to mine." The girl blinked her blank eyes at me, while the doctor rummaged through his pile of papers, looking for my report.

"Well, lets start off with you, Kunimitsu." He began, "You're arm is healing well, though you shouldn't take too many long matches. As long as you keep resting consistently, you should be fine for the nationals." I nodded as a sign of appreciation. The doctor turned over to Miyuki.

"Miyuki, can you tell me which part of your arm hurts?" He asked gently. Miyuki pointed to her elbow, then to her shoulder, then to her wrist. "Everything?" He asked, adding a chuckle, she nodded seriously. "Then lets get it x-rayed to see if anything has happened to the bones, shall we?" She nodded and followed the doctor slowly out of the room. Pausing at the door, she looked back at me. I nodded to the doctor who was waiting in the corridor. She still stood there, her eyes looked scared. I got up from my seat and went with her. As we walked over to the x-ray room, Miyuki stayed behind me, holding tight to my jacket.

**Miyuki- X-ray, Hospital**

It was frightening. My first time in a hospital in Japan. They made me take everything metal off, in case of the radiation. I took off my anklet, a gift from my best friend Hannah in America. She gave it to me on my tenth birthday, which nobody else remembered. I gave it to the lady in the hospital gear outside the x-ray room, she placed it inside a tray which sat on the table in front of the room. I walked in with Tezuka senpai following behind. He stood at the door and told me,

"I'll wait for you out here." I turned around and sighed. Then walked over to get my arm x-rayed.

"There's not too much damage in the wrist, just the elbow. There seems to be a small crack right here." The doctor pointed to my x-ray, locating a small, black line, zig zagging through the white bone. I bobbed my head as he explained why it might have hurt so much, with such a tiny crack, and what I could do to reduce the pain and such. Half an hour later, I had collected the pain killers while Tezuka waited inside with the doctor. When I finished gathering my bags and was ready to walk out of the room, the doctor came up behind us,

"Remember to rest for a week, then come back for a check-up. Within the week, you shouldn't play tennis." I gaped at the last statement. _Was he serious? No tennis for a week?_

"You mean I can't even play the sport?" I inquired.

"Well technically, you shouldn't be playing any sport at all. I can write a note for you to hand to your Phys Ed teacher." He replied. Perfectly calm. I was about to scream, when Tezuka drove me off.

"Well, thank you very much for the sudden appointment. If you excuse us, we'll be on our way now." He said, in his deep, stoic voice. With that, he shooed us out of the hospital, pulling me to the sidewalk. _I had to scream._

"ARGHHHHHH!" I yelled. He pulled me around, facing him. "How can this even happen? Not play tennis for a week?" I squawked.

"You were hit by a senpai, right?" He asked. I lowered my anger and nodded,

"Syuusuke told you."

"Yeah." He replied in a calm voice, "I got hit by a senpai too. With a racket." He added. I could feel my eyes widening.

"And you managed to not play tennis for a week?" I asked. He shook his head.

"No, I played one game." _Oh._ Was all that ran through my head. "But I had to stop for a long time. Much longer than a week." I gawked.

"You managed?" I stuttered. As the captain, it must've been pretty hard to stop, even for a week. I gulped, then straightened myself. "Well, I guess I can wait for a week." I told him. He nodded and began to walk. I walked slowly behind him. All these thoughts crowded in my head. _I can't play tennis for a week. Why the hell did I come back to Japan? Nothing here is good enough for America. I really want to call Hannah and the others. How could I have been so dumb enough for her to hit me with a racket? I WANT TO GO BACK. I WANT TO GO BACK. I WANT TO GO BACK!_

"Argh." I mumbled to myself. Tezuka senpai stopped and turned around.

"It takes time to get over with. I'll walk you back home, Fuji can calm you down then." He said. Dammit. Syuusuke again. _Does he know how bad it feels to be neglected? By your entire family? _I was angry again, at that stupid part of my history. I had tried to ignore it when I was sent to America. At the airport, when Dad dropped me off and kissed me good-bye, I'd been trying to ignore the fact that everyone would forget about me, the moment I boarded the plane. As I walked down the ramp, carrying my koala backpack that contained my favorite story book as a child, my phone, wallet, some candy that I'd bought after I'd went through immigration, and the photo of our family that I stashed in last minute. Half crumpled when I took it out again on the plane; I'd already forgotten half of it. Until the rest came back to me when I stepped onto the plane. _They're gonna forget about me. _I thought. Blinking back the tears, I ran over to my seat, pulling on the seatbelt fast, then plugging the headphones in to push the thoughts out of my mind. It didn't hurt afterward, until I returned five years later.

**Syuusuke- Waiting for Miyuki, Home**

Miyuki still hadn't come back yet. It was dark already. I hoped for the least that Tezuka would accompany her. It was then that I'd started to realize how much I'd missed her. When she'd left, everything still felt the same. I was busy with my work, and Yuuta was still running around, getting into trouble. Every time, I was the one who pulled him out of it. But nothing happened with my sister. She stayed far away from us, even when everything had gotten more peaceful. When it did, I'd only realized then that she was literally gone. I'd missed her, but I got over that. Moving on to school work, tennis, taking care of Yuuta. I'd started to forget about her. I remember, just after she left, Dad and Mom would take turns talking to her every night for a limited amount of time. They'd just say hi, ask how she was, tell her to catch up on her homework, say "I love you," then hang up. Every time, they repeat the same phrase over and over again, just before they hang up; each time, the same phrase seems to have less meaning than before. It was just like a way to say that they still cared for her, when they couldn't think of something else to say to her. Then after a month, she stopped calling us. And we stopped calling her.

"I'm back." Miyuki called, as she opened the door. I walked up to her, placing my hand on her shoulder,

"Is it alright?" I asked, trying to get her attention.

"I'm fine." She replied, sounding annoyed, brushed my hand off her shoulder with the tips of her fingers. Like my hand was a burden on her arm. I looked over to Tezuka who was just about to leave.

"Tezuka," I called. He stopped and looked over. I paused. I was about to ask him what happened, but decided not to. "Thanks for bringing her back." I told him. He nodded then walked out of the gate. I closed the doors, and walked back inside the house. Miyuki had already trudged upstairs to her room to do her homework. Seeing her like this really made me regret what I'd thought about her yesterday.

**Miyuki- Homework, Bedroom**

I sat down by my desk, staring into a math problem. Feeling bored, I played around with the pen, twirling it around and around my fingers, then dropping it against the hard wooden table. I sat back to stretch myself, then inspected my arm. _It's okay, I can still play with the other arm._ I began packing up the rackets for practice tomorrow. Just when Syuusuke walked into the room.

"Could you please knock?" I said, feeling annoyed,

"Oh, I'm sorry." Was the reply. I was still pissed when he didn't say anything afterwards,

"I'm kind of busy here, so if you could just..." I began,

"What did the doctor say?" He interrupted.

"Nothing, he just gave me some painkillers, thats all." I was really annoyed, trying to cut the conversation.

"No. Really, what did he say?" He pressed. I couldn't stand it anymore.

"HE SAID I COULDN'T PLAY FOR A WEEK. THERE, YOU KNOW NOW. SO CAN'T YOU JUST LEAVE ME ALONE?" I yelled. He seemed surprised. I turned around to face my homework, my head pulled close to the paper. I was crying.

_What the hell, Miyuki. What the hell are you crying for? Oh yeah, that's right. I can't play for a week. _I ran a finger across the wet, blotchy page. Then looked up and wiped away the tears. _No, I'm not that angry about the tennis thing. It's him._ I thought. Thinking of that person who was standing right at my bedroom door, the one who used to play tennis with me all the time when I was a kid. The one who'd stopped playing tennis with me. The one who'd forgotten about me. He was standing right there. In front of me.


	5. Miyuki acting weird

**Sakuno- Morning practice, Tennis courts**

"Miyuki chan!" I called out to her. She was standing behind the fence watching the other regulars practice. She didn't even look up when I called her name. Her usual smiley face was so droopy I honestly thought she was dead. "Miyuki!" I called out a bit louder, this time, her head snapped up and she looked at me.

"Oh, Hi. Sakuno." She responded, looking somewhat a little more cheerier than before. I walked up to her, hopping every other step or so. When I got up to her, I asked her almost too quickly.

"What happened?" My face was quizzical. She looked at me and started laughing. I joined in sooner. Then we suddenly heard the boys' captain Tezuka senpai booming at us.

"What are you doing? You two should be back at the girls' courts. Stop the chit-chat and hurry back."

I nodded quickly and turned to Miyuki, who obviously wasn't looking too well. Tezuka senpai looked over to her and asked,

"Fuji kun, do you need to see the nurse?" She shook her head, rejecting his offer. He nodded when we left. I looked at Miyuki as we went back to the girls' courts. She really wasn't fine. I nudged her on the shoulder and she mumbled.

"Hmm?" I stopped walking all of a sudden that she didn't even realize.

"Miyuki. What is happening to you?" She looked back at me. Not even realizing that I was a few feet behind. She ran up to me cheerfully and spoke,

"Nothing! It's just that I was thinking of _something._" _Something. _Meant much more than what it sounded like. She put on her fake smile and dragged me back to the tennis courts, "Come on! We can't miss practice, especially for a regular." She smiled at me, I couldn't do anything else but to smile back.

**Tezuka- Morning practice, Tennis courts**

There was something wrong with Miyuki. She wasn't angry at her arm. I could tell. If she were, she would have been clutching it, just how I did after going to the doctor's to have it examined. No. That definitely wasn't the problem. It was something else. Something she couldn't let go of, something that would hurt so much that an injured arm would seem like nothing at all.

**Ryusaki- Math class, classroom**

Tezuka had told me about the Miyuki's arm incident. I had a vague impression on who did it, though I couldn't say that out loud. Not in my post. The girl seems pretty much the same as ever. She was still so chatty during class, especially with Sakuno and Tomoka. And as usual, she aced all the math tests as if it were nothing.

"Fuji kun, please come and meet me after the lesson today." I called out to her, coming up with the idea of talking to her about her arm. She looked up at the sound of her name, then nodded to my suggestion.

After class, the three of them walked out together. _My, these girls just stick together like a bowl of sticky rice huh? _I thought to myself. I shooed Sakuno and Tomoka away to hold a private conversation with Miyuki.

"Sensei, what was this all about during class. I'm pretty sure I finished all my homework for the last two months or so." She drifted off to think of what she may have left out, I chuckled at her look. "Oops, I'm sorry. I wasn't listening." I cleared my throat,

"Ahem, it seems to me that the female regulars don't seem to welcoming." I began.

"Well, they don't just usher other players into the tennis courts at practice, no." She said.

"I'm pretty sure they don't." I replied, letting out a small laugh. "Well perhaps you would like to join the boys' team?" I proposed. She stopped for a while, then said,

"I'll think about it. Though I really have to consider that." It sounded hesitant. Not very Miyuki.

"Why, do you have any problems with joining the boys' team? Wait, no. You don't have to be intimidated by them. They aren't any better than you. If you haven't realized." I guessed. She shook her head,

"There're other things I must consider. I'll give you an answer next week. I'll think about it." She said again. Then bowed and ran off to have her lunch. I gazed at her from behind. I knew she wasn't telling me something.

**Tomoka- Lunch, Cafeteria**

"Hey!" I yelled in the cafeteria. Out loud. Miyuki came trotting over to Sakuno and me, queuing up in the lunch line. We shuffled backwards to let her into the line. She stared right through the gap we'd specially made for her, as if thinking it were something other than a gap. "Hey!" I snapped my fingers right in front of her face. She burst into giggles after I'd done that, then wrapped me up in a huge bear hug.

"Haha! Tomo chan, I love it when you act like that." I could feel her smile on her face while her head was perched on my shoulder. I was surprised by the hug in the cafeteria. I mean, who suddenly hugs someone else when ordering food. I gently pushed her off, telling her to jump into the line before the lunch lady yelled at us. She hopped in looking for whatever she wanted to eat. We were at the cashier, when Miyuki just grabbed a pack of sushi off the shelf. She came up to us to pay.

"Miyuki." I eyed suspiciously at that sandwich of hers.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"You're getting sushi?"

She shrugs,

"I mean, you don't usually like Japanese food don't you?"

"I felt like it today." She replied. I turned around having the fat cashier lady tapping her perfectly manicured nails onto the cold metal table, putting on one of her most ferocious looks. Sheepish, I took out the money I had in my pocket and handed it to her. _Heh heh. _I thought. Then dashed out of the cafeteria, clutching tight to my dish.

"Oh god, did you see that cashier lady just now?" I gasped out to Sakuno and Miyuki,

"Yeah, she had a pretty big wart coming right out of that arm of hers." Miyuki commented. I laughed.

"True, but I wasn't talking about the wart. You know, her face. The one that scares all the students away. I have a feeling that the school cafeteria is gonna go broke." I said. Miyuki took a bite out of her sandwich. Somehow, she wasn't really being who she usually was. All cheerful and happy, sometimes reminding me of sunflowers that glowed right beneath the sun. I sneaked a look over to Sakuno, who was trying to steal a piece of Miyuki's sushi. She actually managed to get the sushi and pop it into her mouth before having Miyuki notice it. When Miyuki looked down, noticing the empty sushi space, looked over to me. I yelled out innocently,

"Why are you looking at me?" Looking over to Sakuno.

"Oh, do you really think that I would steal that? Miyuki chan?" Sakuno replied in her sweet voice. Miyuki turned back to me, putting on a stern face.

"I swear I didn't take anything of yours." I said, slamming my hand onto the table, so hard that it actually hurt. She laughed a little and shook her head.

"It's alright if you took it, I didn't really want it anyways." She said, shaking her head again, this time, much slower than before. Sakuno _politely_ asked,

"Miyuki, can I have one then?" I was fuming, but Miyuki just nodded and looked as if nothing had even happened. _There is evil within Sakuno. _I thought. _But Miyuki._ Another thought. _Something's wrong. _And I knew it.

**Ryoma- English lesson, classroom**

The girl who was called to answer the questions on the board was caught staring out of the window. She stood up and walked over to the board, took the chalk the teacher was holding, and wrote down the correct answers. They were all correct. Pretty much the same as mine, written down _neatly _in my notebook. The class suddenly sat up to see the answers, some busy copying them down into their own notebooks, obviously not done their homework. I sneaked a glance over to Sakuno, who was also looking up, probably surprised at the girl's work. That was not particularly surprising to me. People could work wonders, like this girl was a lefty who played tennis with her right. She smugly walked back to her seat to resume staring out of the window, with the teacher reminding her again to pay attention to the class. Not that she needed to anyway. I looked at her. She was Fuji Miyuki, Fuji Syuusuke's younger sister. I was pretty sure she had come back from America, not because of her, well- _perfect_ English, but the way her body expressed itself was a little different to how people would in Japan. I watched a few of her games, they were all pretty special with her own play style. She was a serve and volley, but her sense in rhythm and timing was flawless, almost as if she had to make everything precise, just like the rhythm in music. I'd see her almost everyday during English class, but never like this before. Her hair would be spiffy sometimes, flying around here and there, which looked good on her. But today, her hair was all limp and flaccid, stuck tight to her neck. Not her at all. I noticed the bruise on her left arm. It was purple. Pale purple, not too noticeable. Maybe that was what she was worrying about.

**Miyuki- The next day. Drama lesson, classroom**

Today was the first drama lesson I'd ever been to in Japan. We'd just got an addition that included drama or performance. I've been to drama lessons in my old school back in the US, but it was bound to be different to the one right next on my schedule.

I hurried over to the drama classrooms, which were located on the other side of the campus. Grabbing my backpack tightly in case it fell off as I ran swiftly across and made it just in time, with the teacher speaking to the rest of the class.

"Sorry I'm late." I mumbled, clumsily trying to put my backpack down, unzipping the top of it to grab my pencil case out.

"You can just leave the bag there. Don't take anything with you. And take off your shoes please before entering the studio." She replied.

That lesson, was when I'd realized that the drama classroom was preferably called a _studio. _It was also my first ever drama lesson in Japan. And did I say that I knew it would be different? On my very first drama lesson, I got split up with Sakuno and Tomo chan who were with a different teacher, studying something else. My class was one of the worst imaginable. The people were a bunch of stuck up snobs who could do nothing but to boast about their epic fail drama skills. It was also the first time that I had ever been yelled at by a teacher, twice in the first lesson I'd spent with her.

"Fuji kun! Don't just stand there, you must move. Move your body, shake yourself. Do this properly! Or you'll be spending your lunchtime sweeping the halls."

"Hai." Was all I managed to say, then move again.

I gathered my belongings and ran back to the other end of the campus, where math, my favorite subject was waiting for me. Sakuno and Tomo chan ran up to me, they were both laughing when Tomo chan said something.

"Hey Miyuki! How was your lesson?" Tomo chan asked, a huge smile on her face.

"It was great. I got the perfect class without my two best friends and the world's most awesome teacher who yelled at her student twice on the first day." I replied, sarcasm oozing out. I felt a little bad afterward, Sakuno looking a little hurt.

"Don't worry, I'll make it though." I replied, trying to make her feel better. "Thank goodness its math next." I said with a sigh. They looked at each other and laughed.

"Miyuki is the only one who actually enjoys math." Tomo chan giggled. I frowned at her for a while, but started giggling as well.

I'd never felt so upset before. I didn't know why. Maybe it was the lessons. Maybe it was practice. Maybe it was just me.

I ran to the toilet and locked myself into a cubicle, crying those tears out. They rolled down my cheeks, leaving a glossy trail that made my face look like it was made of plastic. I didn't care how bad I'd looked, I just let the tears keep rolling, until I had none left in my eyes. I closed my eyelids slowly, trying to imagine how it would have been if I'd hadn't come back. Everything would've just been great, no comparing between you and other people, no competition when you're already the best of all.

After I came out from the toilet. I rejoined my class in the classroom. Ryusaki sensei came over to ask if I was fine. I'd told her that I felt a little sick, I needed to see the nurse. She nodded and told Sakuno to accompany me. I shook my head as a no. She nodded and led me to the door. Once we were outside, she called me back for a minute.

"Miyuki. Is something bothering you? I mean, something from home? Syuusuke?" She asked. I shook my head.

"Everything is. Well, fine. I suppose. I just think I'm a little unused to the sudden change. America's a big difference I guess." I shrugged and she nodded at my assumption. I bowed and left the corridor. Even when I reached the end, I could still feel her eyes stuck onto my back. She was watching me all the way.

**Miyuki- Nurse, Infirmary**

"Hm, no fever. You're probably fine, but you better lie down for a while. I'll get your brother. Fuji Syuusuke, right?" She smiled as she said Syuusuke's name. I was about to tell her not to, when she'd already asked another staff to run up to Syuusuke's classroom to get him down. She returned, the smile still on her face. "He's coming." She replied happily, hoping I'd be happy too.

"You didn't have to do that." I told her. She looked at me in surprise, unexpected of the answer. "I mean, I'm fine myself like this, right?" I tried to tell her that I didn't need anyone there to watch for me. She smiled again and spoke again,

"Syuusuke, he's one of the best students here. So thoughtful, caring for others." She smiled again, looking at me, "he'd be the first one to bring an injured freshman from the tennis club over..." Her voice trailing as the door to the infirmary burst open. Syuusuke walked in.

"Miyuki. Are you alright?" He asked, worried. I turned to face the wall the bed was against. I pulled the sheets tighter up above my shoulders for protection. Something to cling onto, whether I was going to be neglected again. Even without looking to his side, I knew he was getting a chair over, setting it down beside the bed to take a seat. I felt his nod towards the nurse which left her all smiley and sent her away out of the room. We were alone in the room. He put his hand over my hair, smoothing it down. I'd flinched first when he rested his hand on my head, like it would somehow start messing up my brain or something. He kept smoothing my hair until I couldn't bear it.

"Stop it." I said, annoyance in my voice.

He stopped.

"That's better. Thank you. I can manage myself. I'll just go home if I feel any worse." I informed him.

"They make you go home with someone, even if you feel just fine." He said, withdrawing his hands and placing them back onto his lap.

"Miyuki. What happened?" He asked. I didn't know what he was asking about.

"I'm just not used to this. Okay?" I mumbled, exasperated about being bombarded by questions, just at the moment when I wasn't feeling totally fine. I heard him sigh.

"Miyuki, turn around. I..." He paused. I turned around facing him for the first time in a few days. I could see the worry in his eyes, it reminded me of being pitied, reminding me of how I got hit by the captain, how I'd been yelled at by the teacher twice today, how I'd been left alone. I burst out crying.

**A/N: Again, comments please.... :)**


	6. Miyuki Syuusuke, Syuusuke Miyuki

**Syuusuke- Miyuki, Infirmary**

She burst out crying.

Just like that.

I took her into my arms.

She still cried, but didn't pull away.

That was a start.

"Sh, calm down." I hushed. She sobbed then hiccuped a few times. I smoothed her hair out again, the thin gentle locks of brown hair tumbled down as I ran them through my fingers. This was probably the closest we've ever been to each other, ever since she'd returned from America. Her face still buried in my chest, still sobbing softly. It reminded me of the time when she was still a kid.

_She was coming home from school by herself the very first time. She especially asked to come home herself that exact same morning, getting approval from our parents. It was funny, she was seven at that time, we were all going to the same school, though she didn't let us go home with her. All she wanted was to go home alone, to prove her independence. I hid with Yuuta behind the little cupboards outside her classroom, watching her wave even more happily than ever to her teacher, she trotted outside to the lawn and ran across as the sprinklers opening fire toward her skinny little legs. She dodged the sprays one by one, making it across in no time. Skipping out of school like a child in a fairy tale. She left the school, walking down the pavement with sakura petals snowing heavily, getting caught against her short, shaggy, brown hair. She laughed her glittery bell-like laugh, finger combing the petals out of her hair. Running to the playground that we'd walk past everyday after school to get home, she went over to the little vendor at the edge of the playground selling meat buns. She smiled and chatted with the vendor for a while as he was waiting for the buns to heat up. He handed them to her giving her a final gap-toothed smile as she turned around, facing a bunch of middle schoolers, ready to beat her up._

"_What did you do with our rackets, brat?" The big one in the middle growled to her, she backed off a little, grasping the buns tightly in her hands._

"_What rackets?" She asked innocently, shaking her head. Apparently, she'd taken someone's rackets for practice, since she'd forgotten her own. She didn't know they belonged to someone, it was just lying there, all alone._

"_THE rackets, our rackets." The guy said again, "Don't pretend like you don't know, I'll beat the shit out of you, so you better admit it kid." He stepped up towards her, taking her by the collar._

"_Don't you dare touch me." She snarled, her eyebrows slanting up really high, fierce and all, she shrugged the guy's hands off her collar. Yuuta and I were silent, watching from behind the bushes. If he were to do anything to her, he'd be the one who'd be beaten up. Nobody touches my sister. I thought. But the guy didn't notice the aggressive tone in Miyuki's voice, he picked her up again, this time with much more force, lifting her way above the ground by her collar. Her shirt shifted upwards, revealing her her skinny body beneath the baggy clothes. He smirked and motioned to his other guys. I ran out of the bush, pushed the guy away, then caught my sister. She hid behind me as I drove the guys away. For the entire time we walked home, she didn't say a word._

_When we did get home, she moped around in her room. I went in to check if she was alright, she snapped at me to get out._

"_Don't ever follow me around like that anymore. I'm not some helpless child who needs help all the time." She said angrily, turning away from me. I then realized that she was angry at me for following her. She twirled her chair back, facing me. I noticed there were tears in her eyes, she came over to me, burying herself into me. I hugged her back, real tight. All I could hear was her muffled sobs, the tears staining my shirt, and her silent "I'm sorry"s that came directly from her heart to mine._

Miyuki's sobbing stopped. My mind snapped back to reality, I pulled her out, gazing into her tear stained face. Sweeping her hair back into place and helping her into bed. Once again, she turned away from me, muttering to herself. I combed her hair with my fingers, she didn't stir, she just stayed there. With her back facing towards me.

**Miyuki- Syuusuke, Infirmary**

I could still feel his hands going through my hair. He was still sitting there after half an hour. I suddenly sat up, feeling sick. I fumbled my hands along the edge of the bed for the bin, then brought it up. Syuusuke, sat on the edge of the bed, holding the bin in front of me, as I vomited my breakfast into it.

Three minutes.

I vomited for three minutes.

That got the nurse rushing in. She burst through the door hearing the sounds of me vomiting. She took the bin from Syuusuke, then yelled for another nurse to come in. The other one shooed him away, he reluctantly left, looking back at me just before he did go. Even after all those years that I'd hated him, all I'd felt then was to have him there, right beside me.

I rested myself against the pillow, snoozing off almost immediately. It was an hour after I'd vomited, the nurse had insisted me in going home, though I'd said that I was fine. All I needed was some rest. She made me stay in the bed for the rest of the day till lunchtime, which was when Syuusuke, Sakuno and the others came in to see me. The regulars dropped by to see if I was fine. Not that I'd really known them at all, they just paid attention to me, since I was Syuusuke's _little sister_. The Ryoma guy from my English class also tagged along. He left behind my first lefty challenge ever since I'd arrived in Japan. I'd took up his offer, saying that I'd play him as soon as I felt better. Which would probably be a few months. I sighed once they left the room. Syuusuke stayed in for a while, though he still had to go to his lessons afterward. I eyed my left elbow. There wasn't anything visible there, but it still hurt. Syuusuke caught me looking at _it, _he came over and took my arm, looking at it, fingering around the elbow gently.

"Does it still hurt?" He asked. Lying, I shook my head as a no. He let go of my arm and said,

"Still trying to face everything alone huh?" I blinked. "You're the same as ever, Miyuki. You never change." He sat back onto the edge of the bed, stroking my hair, "I've missed you." Then stopping and getting up, "Well, I'll see you soon after school. We're going home together, just for today." He added. Then left the room. It just felt funny for us to be this close. I crawled back into the covers and fell asleep.

**Syuusuke- Miyuki, Classroom**

I stared at the test paper that was set down on my table. I didn't focus much, I was thinking too much. Ever since she came back from America, everything was more tense. My life seemed to have been an upturned bottle of the bubble liquid stuff, then thoroughly shook to make sure that everything would foam up, then at the crunchiest moment, they'd begin to fizz up and turn the world upside down. That was how it felt. Miyuki didn't like anyone interfering with her problems, they were always dealt by herself. Even if she did receive help, she'd always feel that she couldn't fulfill herself. It was the same in tennis matches. There was one time when some tough player in the US figured out her way of playing, once her opponents figured her out, she was dead. The other girl began to get her off her rhythm, messing the beats and tempo up. Miyuki couldn't keep up with the game. Her rhythm was the main element that kept her stamina up and her chasing the ball. Without it, she was a total failure. Well, the girl kept chucking random balls at her, toying with the rhythm. It finally got to a point when Miyuki couldn't stand it and forfeited. That was probably the most hated match she'd ever played.

**Miyuki- Syuusuke, Tennis practice**

It was finally then end of school, the nurses let me out of the infirmary _finally. _I trudged over to the tennis courts, making my way through the wet, muddy ground. As I walked past the little shed beside the court, the sakura petals showered down on top of me. The little flakes danced as they drifted across the path, landing one by one onto the soggy ground. I caught one of them as it fell. It reminded me of the time I tried to walk home myself. It didn't anger me now, not right after he came to visit and said those things. I shook the petal off my hand after snapping back to reality. Jogging over to the tennis courts.

After the injury, I'd been strictly prohibited from holding a racket, much less playing an actual game. I'd insisted that I could use my right hand, though it still wasn't much use. These visits to the courts were merely just entertainment or a temporary bridge that connected me to tennis for the meantime. The fences stood between me and him. It was just practice, he wasn't even up to serious yet. Across the court, there was Oishi senpai. Serving balls over and over again to Syuusuke, making him run faster each time. I counted according to the beats of the ball, increasing the tempo each time the ball was served. Even so focused on the rhythm, I couldn't help hearing the sudden squeal coming from the other side of the fence.

"Syuusuke kun!" The girl waving madly to him. He looked up, missing the ball. Smiled and continued with Oishi swinging the racket, ready to serve. He'd caught up with the rest of them without stopping once, even though the shrieks coming from the other end were continuous.

"Aaaaahhhh! He's so hot I'm actually sweating!" The comments blaring out from the other end." Once the statement was made, the bunch of other girls surrounding the one who'd squealed, began to giggle, which slowly turned into other love confessions to their dearest regulars. Syuusuke turned around for a drink, noticing me. He cocked his head, inviting me into the court. I had to accept. It was so long since I'd actually stepped in. I rushed through the gate and sat down at the bench, fingering the racket that was placed on the bench, all alone. Syuusuke sipped his water from the bottle, then smiling at me,

"Go take the racket to practice."

I gawked at him in surprise. _Him? Telling me to practice, even though being the most overprotective person I've ever met, ever since I'd injured my arm? Impossible. _He smiled again. _Meaning: Go ahead. _I grinned at the racket, clasping it on my left hand.

"Um, no. You must promise me that you will use only your right hand." He said, serious. I nodded and switched the racket over to my right hand. Holding it up for approval. He nodded and watched as I made my way over to the wall beside the courts.

**Miyuki- practice, walls**

I could feel his eyes hammering into my back as I made my way toward the wall. The racket felt out of place in my hand, it was somewhat heavier than I'd expected. So much for not practicing in a few weeks. I gripped it a little tighter, then releasing the serve that I'd awaited too long. I couldn't get the rhythm right. It wouldn't blast out my ears like it would've usually. There wasn't a set tempo at the beginning, and the balls would fly all over the place. Concentrating, I began practicing my stepping. Still holding the racket in my hands, I counted under my breath and began stepping against the beat.

"One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four. One..." That went on for five minutes. Until I'd finally nailed it, I went to try again.

_Pok, pok, pok. The ball went against the wall in a steady rhythm. It was autumn, the leaves fell, crackling as I stepped on the dried up brown ones as I stepped from side to side. It was already four years ever since I'd gotten to America. Things were going real smooth; school, tennis and all, I'd nearly forgotten all about my life back in Japan. I tried hard not to remember, but sometimes it came back; like waves pulling back onto the shore. The first wave would come, crashing on the rocks, the foam hissing up feet dug into the sand. Then it would penetrate deep into the sand, almost totally forgotten about. But the next wave would be ready to strike. It was just the same. The waves would keep striking me in the brain, not only will the flashbacks come, the pain too. When it first happened, I'd shake my head, burry myself into my pillow and scream my guts into it. Then I'd hear it, the thoughts, the flashbacks, the pain; its all surrounded by medium sized bubbles, like the kind you'd see in a dream. They would pop, one by one. Some go "CRUNCH" as they pop, the sound that the leaves made as I'd stepped on them, but when it "CRUNCH"-ed, it hurt even more._

I was concentrating on hitting the ball in rhythm. I'd begun to get the hang of it after practicing for half an hour or so. I'd stuck a song in that juke box in my brain, it played slowly and steadily, easier for me to catch up with.

Back and forth, the racket was swinging across my body, my arms aching from the lacking amount of practice over the past week. That was me. I couldn't do anything right without the decent amount of practice, when I say "decent amount", I mean practicing at least an hour each day; it took me ages to memorize my times tables without spending each day chanting out loud, even in the shower. I dropped my arm low with the racket swooping towards the ground. The sweat on my arm dripped from my stiff fingers which were equally as painful as my arm. I'd just realized, ever since the arm incident, I hadn't been myself a while, whatever it was; tennis, piano, studies. My mood. I probably seemed like a total jerk or some random bitch who couldn't get over PMS because the cramps kicked in the whole time. But again, that pretty much was what happened, just that it wasn't the PMS, no it wasn't. It was the arm.

**A/N: YIPPEEDOOS GUYS!!!!! SIXTH CHAPPIE FINALLY DONE :) SPENT AGES WORKING ON THIS ONE TO MAKE IT UP FOR THE LAST ONE..... (I wasn't too happy with the beginning.) ANYWAYZ....... JUST FELT LIKE TYPING IN CAPS. FANKS FOR ALL THE REVIEWS... REALLY APPRECIATE IT FOR EVERYONE WHO REVIEWED xp. PLEASE LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS OR REVIEWS... ANYTHING ACCEPTED :)**


	7. The other lefty

**Ryoma- Challenge, Tennis courts**

"Must be boring to hit the ball to the wall by yourself."

She turned around, looking slightly happier than what I'd have assumed.

"And what have _you _got to say about that?" She said, her free hand on her hip, bottom slightly jutting out towards the left. A little _cute._

"Ahem, nothing. Just thought you wanted some _actual _practice." I offered. She beamed unusually. I guess Fuji senpai did not allow his baby sister to practice yet, after the arm incident. She nodded, accepting the offer. Leading me towards the tennis courts, she suddenly blabbered out something,

"I've got something I need to show you. Well, Syuusuke knows or knew about it, before I got it sealed. Anyways, I'll show you. You're probably the best _other _lefty I can try it out on."

Hiding my smile, I shrugged. Trying to anticipate what this "sealed" move was. Her play style was already surprising enough, having a sealed move would make her double as mysterious. I settled down my bag onto the bench, grabbing my racket and tugging at a few of the strings. Re-adjusting my cap, I walked over to the spot. She was ready. So was I.

"Here I go." I threw the ball up high, then hitting it across the court. My signature, twist serve done with the right hand (Just to be fair). But of course, she caught up to it. The racket in her right hand, clutched real tight. _Right, Fuji senpai must've made her use the right hand. How else could she play? _Even with her right hand, she was pretty good. She hit it back, with her rhythmic timing.

"You're pretty good even with the right hand."

"So you can stop using yours." She replied. I smirked and switched. Holding the racket up high for her to confirm. I bounced the ball a few times, then picking it up and throwing it high into the air. THWAK! It was gone.

**Miyuki- Challenge, Tennis courts**

The bright green of the tennis ball shot across the net, I was ready for it. Getting back into my stance, I tapped my feet lightly and quickly. Then at the right moment, I shot out, hitting the ball right on the sweet spot. It went across the court and over the net over and over again. When the rally didn't stop for what seemed like a long time, I was starting to feel like it was a deja vu. The same scene kept replaying all over again, except it was a different opponent each time. The first was Syuusuke, then came Yuuta, some of my friends back over in the US; Jess, Gordon, Andrew, Louise. They were all there. The face would change every time another ball was hit across the court, I'd be waiting there for the ball to charge straight at me, then swinging my racket over and over again, until my good arm began to hurt. For the fiftieth rally, I'd began to ache all over. With the final blow, I'd sent the ball flying. This was the new move I'd been trying to test out. I'd toss the ball up real high, then let it drop down to the other end of the court, where it would continuously spin right on the spot for the rest of the beats that had to be filled. Counting silently in my heart, one, two, three, four. At four, the ball stopped immediately without force at all. And a surprised Ryoma looking down at the ball, waiting for it to somehow bounce back up again. I collapsed onto the ground once the ball stopped spinning.

"It's useless." I'd say, watching him stare at the ball. "It'll stop, but it won't bounce up again." I saw the pain on my right arm. It rippled slowly from the elbow towards my shoulders, then crawling up to my neck and banging my head repeatedly afterwards. It was a hot day, and I hadn't been drinking much. I lay down on the court my face blinded by the sun that hung above.

**A/N: This is the shortest chapter I've ever written. But I can't think of anything else. Anyone in for some RyomaXMiyuki? Or should I not? Hm... gotta think about that one. But leave anything in the reviews. Pleases and thankyous :)**


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